- ROYCE & BROCK POST-FIGHT COMMENTS

Seven years ago, Royce Gracie was bested in an epic battle with Kazushi Sakuraba as his corner threw in the towel after more than 90 minutes of back and forth action. On Saturday night at Dynamite!! USA in Los Angeles, Calif., the two locked horns again, but this time the battle wasn’t nearly as epic and the result was entirely different. This time it would be the famed Gracie to come out on top.

After three five-minute rounds, Gracie left the ring as the victor by unanimous decision. After seven years, he finally evened the score.

Meeting with the press at the end of the night, Gracie was obviously happy, but not as much by the victory as for the sacrifices of preparation to be over so that he could once again be with his wife and children. In fact, his family surrounded him as he spoke with the media, including his father, the 95-year-old jiu-jitsu pioneer Helio Gracie.

Despite having his original opponent, Hong Man Choi, removed from competition in the days leading up to the fight, Brock Lesnar was successful in his mixed martial arts debut defeating late replacement Min Soo Kim.

Kim got in Lesnar’s face early, but it was Lesnar that would put his opponent on the mat, securing a dominant top position and pounding out a punishing tapout from the strikes. An appropriate finish for the brash fighter from Minnesota who made his mark nearly a decade ago as one of the fiercest collegiate wrestlers in modern memory, compiling a 105-6 record en route to an NCAA wrestling championship.

Now 30 years of age, Lesnar is a little late in getting into the fight game, but it comes after a successful stint as one of the most popular wrestlers in the WWE and a failed attempt at playing football in the National Football League. But with the effort he displayed on Saturday night, Lesnar proved that there is a future for him in this sport if he so chooses.

And it appears he’s going nowhere soon. In his post-fight comments, Lesnar stated, “I had a point to prove. I have a very big heart for this fight game and I’ll be around for awhile.”